Celebrating Women

Have you ever thought how the world would be like without women? Well...maybe you should, then you will realize that these amazing beings need to be celebrated, not just in one month of the year but everyday.

As I was walking in town,I bumped into some great women that I know...we had great chats and I came up with the idea to do a women's month article for my blog, so then I ended up asking them what it means to to them to be a woman? And this is what they had to say.

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Being a woman is a gift from God.

It means a, we give birth not only to life but to love, families, businesses and communities. Being a woman these days is exciting because we are now open to a world of possibilities, a world where we can be anyone, anything we want to be.

A lot of other women have worked hard to break the glass ceiling and that has awarded us an opportunity to go through life without bruises. Go through and command to be listened to, to be respected and most importantly to prove that we can do it too. Do it better than any man.

Overall…it means being gracious, virtuous and not try to be super heroes. We are women and that alone holds all the powers that super heroes are trying to portray. 

Psalms 11:16

👆Bertha Sithole - Startup Grind Mbabane Director and social media 

strategist.

Being a woman means being selfish to yourself.

It means loving others more, caring more for others, giving others more. It means putting others first and not yourself all the time.

Being a woman requires great strength. Women have invincible might to get anything done.

Women give in everything they have and not expect anything in return. Being a woman practically means being a boss, wrapped up in resilience and love.

👆Mandisa Dlamini- Associate Degree holder in Public Relations and currently working at Swazi Wire

Being a woman means being the sun.

The sun brings light to the universe, bringing light to doomed families and friends.

A woman is capable of bringing a smile to somber souls through the love that’s packed in every cell of a woman.

👆Sihle Zwane- Nursing Student at SANU 

Being a woman is a very complex thing. 

You may be a female but that doesn’t mean 

you’ll grow up to be a women.

A woman is a strong person who makes it no matter how hard it may seem, someone who fights for what is good, fends for herself, and does everything in her power to make things work for her, despite whatever judgment everyone around her has.

To me, it means being able to take responsibility of everything you do and paving your way to whatever will make you happy, being your own role model because honestly, you are the only one who will live your life so you better live it the way you want it to be. If you being your own mentor feels like a bad idea then change you to suit your idea of the true mentor you want in you.

                                                                                   👆Snethemba Dlamini-Environmental 
                                                                                            Health Student at UNESWA 

After hearing all these great views from these young, beautiful and talented women, I decided to talk to some amazing women in Art who are doing powerful things.

Coralee Vilakati

🔥Tell me a bit about yourself       

I'm Coralee Vilakati, born in Siteki but grew up in South Africa where I attended school. I'm a mom, daughter and a sister and a full time fashion and promotional model.

🔥 What does it mean to you to be a woman

It means nurturing, caring, loving, wearing your heart on your sleeves, confidence, being courageous and being strong.

 🔥How did you get into fashion and modelling

My first love was pageants. I grew up watching beauty contests as much as I could and I saw myself as a title holder one day. I became a mom and it wasn't possible anymore so I opted for modelling. I got myself a modeling agency in the country late 2013 but soon realized it wasn't what I wanted as there wasn't anything to do as a model in the country then I went to a casting for a fashion week I had seen on Facebook,  got in, and it opened opportunities for me. Haven't looked back ever since.

  🔥What advice would you give to your younger self now that you’ve seen how the world really is

It's okay to make mistakes, that's how you grow. Do not entertain negativity because you give it power (funny I just realized this now, this year). Do not cover up what you perceive as flaws, let your individuality show cherish whatever makes you unique. 

 🔥How important is it for women to learn independence

There is nothing more satisfying than knowing you can do anything and almost everything by yourself. Being able to pay your own bills, buying your own food, paying for your own movie ticket. You have to be able to recognize, shape and build off of your own strengths and weaknesses. The only person in control and holds the reigns to your life is you. Other people will enhance who you are, make you smile and be a companion in your life. You need to be able to overcome the world on your own. I have realized how strong, comfortable, determined, courageous and incredible I am by myself with nobody's help or affirmation. 

 🔥What do you think defines a woman’s beauty

Beauty is about knowing yourself, your worth and confidence. You can't eat it, it cannot be consumed, it's something that you just have to be, every single woman out there, I'm not talking about looks, but the kind that inflames the heart.

 🔥What is your view on women and the “Bring her down syndrome”

I don't support it, we must reject the 'bring her down syndrome ' as woman we need to start uplifting each other. We still have a long way to go in empowering each other.

 🔥What do you think is the role of older woman to the younger generation right now that seems to be losing a lot of values and principles

Being there, support goes a long  way. And I think the girls in rural areas lack what other girls in urban areas have. Like they are now these business presentation going on, girl to girl or woman to woman, talk like that goes around with a fee of course but no one ever thinks of going where they come from and show these girls it's possible. They just get a better life maybe build back home and those girls are made to believe she married a rich man. I think it would be amazing for a woman who comes from a village to go back to her own community hall and talk to them, where they know them cause they would understand better and see the possibilities. Just so when they go to further their studies or work they don't turn to a man to make their life better but simple focus to provide themselves with a better life. So they don't loose themselves, their morals, and values. 

🔥There are a lot of women living fake lives, especially on social media because of some sort of pressure they feel from other women. What advice would you give to these young women

To simply run at your own pace and never compare yourself to anyone. Things may not happen when you want them to, and sometimes it may appear as if others are ahead of you. Be patient. 

🔥What are your future plans

I'd love that part to be a surprise.  

Zoe Nonde

🔥Who is Zoe

I was born Zoë Nonde (Zoë Genesis) on the 31st of July 1997. I was born and raised in Manzini, Fairview for most of my childhood, though I later moved to Mbabane then later to Pretoria. I did my primary education at Malkerns Valley Primary school and completed my high school at St Michaels High School. I'm a Communication science student at UNISA, a Logistics coordinator for an international organization called Young Life, but most of all, I'm a musician. 

 🔥What does it mean to you to be a woman

It means being a broken super hero. And that's absolutely okay, because  of our nurturing and excessive loving nature, we are subjected to so much hurt you'd think we shouldn't function. But we do. Actually, we become the greatest, we become super heroes. 

  🔥What would you tell your younger self now that you’ve seen how the world really is

In all honestly, I don't think I've fully seen what the world is like, life is about living and learning. But I do, however, think I've seen enough to tell my younger self to stop thinking I'm second best. I'd tell her to never blame herself for what she's going through, but to understand that these are all puzzles to a bigger and amazing picture. 

🔥How did you get into music

Music became a cemented part of my life when I was only 6, and now that I think of it, that was when I first performed for an audience. I did Gospel covers at my primary school during morning assemblies. In 2015 I transitioned to a recording artist, and it was in 2016 that I started professionalizing my musical passion and when I dropped my debut solo single, Genesis. 

🔥How important is it for women to learn independence

Critically important. Women are more vulnerable beings and because of that, dependence is detrimental for us. Our nurturing and excessive loving nature is a blessing and a curse really. When administered to the wrong person, we don't just lose our financial independence, but we also lose our emotional and logical thinking independence. It's as if the power to even make our own life decisions is stripped away from us and we wait on whoever we're dependent on to make these decisions for us. Losing the tiniest sense of independence just really removes everything else less. And there's a misconception that being independent means being alone and wanting nothing to do with anyone else, especially as far as relationships are concerned. But the truth is, even men will tell you how attractive they find women that handle their own. And being in this state of mind as a women makes us make conscious decisions about literally everything, even in relationships. 

  🔥What do you think defines a woman’s beauty

Self-confidence. Do note that I said confidence, and not arrogance. There's a very thin line between these two. Now self-confidence isn't just trusting the legitimacy of your purpose, but it's everything else from embracing your natural beauty and reconciling with your flaws, to forgiving yourself for your mistakes and trying much harder next time. 

🔥What is your view on women and the “Bring her down syndrome”

It's a shame. We call men trash for body shaming and insulting us, but with the research I've done, I've realized that most of them have seen women do so to each other it almost seems like a natural thing to do. We've played ourselves. I believe it's more deeper than we think. Females automatically see the next female as competition, and it's normally for attention. That's the biggest problem. And it's time we invest more time and resources of curbing it. 

🔥What do you think is the role of older woman to the younger 

generation right now that seems to be losing a lot of values and principles

Mentor ship. It's that simple. As much as we live and learn, we also live to teach. I have both a spiritual mentor and a musical mentor, and these are both older females. Our relationship hasn't only helped me but it's helped them too to sharpen their expertise, so they're growing too. A good thing about mentor ship is that it isn't about telling you what to do, because no one likes that, but it's guiding you towards your purpose. Giving you the intellectual aid to help you make your own decisions. 

🔥There are a lot of women living fake lives, especially on social media because of some sort of pressure they feel from other women. What advice would you give to these young women

People have never connected to in-authenticity. And social media likes and followers aren't connections. People want what's real, and if you you're real about it, you're greatly accepted. I feel that's something we fail to understand. Because we don't understand this, we value social media presence more as opposed to personal, interactive connections. I remember how there were talks about  how Alicia Keys' career would end when she decided to stop using make up. These assumptions were made according to social media standards. But her career actually became stronger, because she was real and true to who she is. So her realness outweighed these standards set by  society. That's just how things should be. 

🔥What are your future plans

My plans all are circulated around my yearn to change lives. Lots of people say they want to change lives but the "how" part of it is never clear. I'm one person that has been through quite a lot, and I want my healing process to be everyone else's. I have workshops, projects and documentaries in line for this purpose. So that sums up all my future plans. ◻

Happy Women's Month!